Nghe An: Commune Chairman reported falsely in court, causing many households to suffer

From wasteland to gold land

For many years, Mr. Hoang Van Hieu (61 years old, Cua Mo hamlet, Nghi Yen commune, Nghi Loc district) has been "knocking on the doors" of many government agencies to complain and reclaim his family's land. Holding in his hand a file of documents and petitions weighing more than 2 kg, Mr. Phu said that over the years, he and others in the same situation have sent hundreds of petitions to many agencies, but so far, the case has not been resolved. "We are really tired. Many times we want to give up, but thinking back, doing so would be too disadvantageous for us. The case is so clear, but until now there is still no conclusion," the old farmer with a haggard face said with resentment.

The land that Mr. Hieu and some households claim rights to was originally a wasteland, but its fate has changed in recent years. It has become a golden land, worth tens of billions of dong. The land at the foot of Than Vu mountain (Nghi Yen commune), was previously uninhabited. It was not until the early 80s of the last century that households from the lower hamlets began to come here to build houses and reclaim land. The name Cua Mo hamlet was born from that time. Among the pioneering households to live here, in addition to Mr. Hieu's family, there are also Mr. Nguyen Xuan Phu (65 years old), and the family of Mr. Cao Trong Dien (67 years old).

The reclaimed land now borders the new National Highway 1A. Photo: Tien Hung

Mr. Hieu said that after building the house, he and his family, Mr. Phu, Mr. Dien and 2 other households reclaimed a piece of land of more than 6,200 square meters.², close to the foot of Than Vu mountain. (This plot of land is currently plot 29, map sheet number 48 in the cadastral map of Nghi Yen commune). In which, Mr. Hieu's family grows cajuput and eucalyptus on an area of ​​nearly 1,500m². Mr. Phu's family dug a pond to raise fish on a similar area. Mr. Dien's family planted potatoes, beans, and then switched to growing eucalyptus... According to Mr. Hieu, this land is quite barren, and is separated from the lower hamlet by a stream and the North-South railway, so it did not have much value in the past. Because of its low value, the boundaries between households cultivating this land are unclear. Each household has been cultivating their own portion until today.

However, the fate of that barren land changed after the new National Highway 1A project was constructed. Accordingly, 10 years ago, the new National Highway 1A cut through this area, turning that land into a plot of land facing National Highway 1A for more than 100m. National Highway 1A cutting through also made the residents of Cua Mo hamlet, which was originally a remote area, become a crowded hamlet, bustling with buyers and sellers. The households here also have more livelihoods. Since then, the land in this area has increased rapidly.

Mr. Hieu holds a thick stack of documents and applications. Photo: Tien Hung

The commune reported falsely to the court.

In 2017, Mr. Cao Trong Dien and his wife Nguyen Thi Thanh went to court for divorce but there were still some undivided common assets. Afterwards, Ms. Thanh filed a lawsuit, requesting to divide plot 29, map sheet number 48 with a total area of ​​more than 6,200m2.².

In order to have a basis for the trial, the Nghi Loc District People's Court sent a document requesting the Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee to provide information related to this land plot. In particular, the court asked the Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee whether Mr. Nguyen Xuan Phu and Mr. Hoang Van Hieu used this land plot or any land plot adjacent to this land plot?

On June 11, 2019, Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee issued Report No. 72 signed by Chairman of the Commune People's Committee Dau Xuan Luan to the court to respond to this issue. This report states that, "the land plot originated from Mr. Cao Trong Dien's family clearing wasteland to grow forestry trees and was assigned to Mr. Dien's family in 2014 with an area of ​​6,266.9m2. The certificate of land origin and land use area time of Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee established on November 5, 2014 for land plot 06, map sheet 13, type LNK in Cua Mo hamlet, Nghi Yen commune, Nghi Loc district, Nghe An province does not fully show the year of starting to use the land plot. Map excerpt of land plot 06, map sheet 13 (measurement excerpt); previously plot 107, map sheet type 07 (map 299), currently plot 29, map sheet 48, type LNK, Cua Mo hamlet, Nghi Yen commune, Nghi Loc district, Nghe An province does not show the land use rights of Mr. Hoang Van Hieu and Nguyen Xuan Phu. Mr. Hieu, Mr. Phu does not use the plots of land adjacent to plot 06, map sheet 13 (measurement extract); previously plot 107, map sheet 07 (map 299); currently plot 29, map sheet 48 (Cadavert map)".

Based on the report of Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee, the Court of First Instance and Appeal did not accept the request of Mr. Phu and Mr. Hieu, but divided the land plot of more than 6,200m2 in half.²This is for Mr. Dien and Mrs. Thanh.

The eucalyptus grove that Mr. Hieu planted is still on the land. Photo: Tien Hung

Meanwhile, according to the investigation of Nghe An Newspaper reporter, Report No. 72 that Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee sent to the court contained false information, seriously affecting the court's judgment. Specifically, Report No. 72, also signed by Chairman of the Commune People's Committee Dau Xuan Luan on June 11, 2019, but the most important content of the report in the version sent to the court and in the version kept in Nghi Yen commune are completely contradictory.

In the report sent to the court, the Chairman of Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee said that Mr. Hieu and Mr. Phu did not use this plot of land and did not use the adjacent plots of land. Meanwhile, the report kept at Nghi Yen Commune stated that "Mr. Phu and Mr. Hieu used a part of the area in this plot of land".

Speaking to Nghe An Newspaper reporters, Mr. Dau Xuan Luan confirmed that he had signed both reports. “This was a mistake. My colleagues in the field presented it, I signed it and sent it to the court without paying close attention,” Mr. Luan said, admitting that the report sent to Nghi Loc District People’s Court was incorrect, while the one kept in Nghi Yen commune was correct. The commune will soon make an explanation to the court, requesting to cancel the inaccurate report sent to the court.

Meanwhile, according to the people, they discovered the contradiction between these two reports and they have long complained to the commune but the commune leaders have not resolved the matter. The households then had to file a complaint, requesting a final appeal of the verdict of the People's Court of Nghe An province.

On November 7, 2021, the Chief Justice of the High People's Procuracy in Hanoi issued a decision to appeal the final judgment of the Family and Marriage Appeal Judgment No. 23/2020/HNGD-PT dated August 13, 2020 of the People's Court of Nghe An province.

In the appeal decision, the Hanoi High People's Procuracy stated that in the appeal petition, Mr. Hieu and Mr. Phu enclosed a copy of Report No. 72 of the Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee (certified by the Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee) stating that Mr. Phu and Mr. Hieu used a part of the disputed land area. The content of this report is contrary to Report No. 72 that the Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee provided to the Court as a basis for resolving the case.

Mr. Hieu's family has received signatures from many long-time residents here confirming that Mr. Hieu has reclaimed and cultivated this land. Photo: Tien Hung

The High People's Procuracy in Hanoi has entrusted the Nghi Loc District People's Procuracy to verify and clarify the contradictions between the two above documents. In the Minutes of the meeting dated October 4, 2021, between the Nghi Loc District People's Procuracy and Mr. Tran Cong Hoa - Vice Chairman of Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee (the person who signed to certify the copy), Mr. Hoa affirmed: Based on the original kept at the Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee Office, the certification between the copy and the original is correct in content. The certification as well as the storage of documents must comply with the provisions of law. He did not know the content of Report No. 72 at the Court.

Also according to the High People's Procuracy in Hanoi, in order to have a basis to resolve the case, in Report No. 111/BC-UBND dated October 12, 2021 of the People's Committee of Nghi Yen commune, it was affirmed that in fact, Mr. Hoang Van Hieu and Mr. Nguyen Xuan Phu used a part of the area in plot 29, map sheet 48 (cadastral map), Cua Mo hamlet, Nghi Yen commune. Report No. 72 kept at the People's Committee of Nghi Yen commune is the correct document.

“Thus, Report No. 72, which the court of first instance and the court of appeal used as the basis to resolve the case, has different content from Report No. 72 kept at the People's Committee of Nghi Yen commune, infringing on the rights and obligations of the parties, and not true to the objective truth of the case,” the appeal decision stated.

For the above reasons, the Hanoi High People's Procuracy decided to appeal the entire Appeal Judgment No. 23/2020/HNGD-PT dated August 13, 2020 of the People's Court of Nghe An province according to the cassation procedure. At the same time, it requested the Judicial Committee of the Hanoi High People's Court to review the cassation trial to annul the above-mentioned appellate family judgment and the First Instance Judgment No. 260/2019/HNGD-ST dated November 20, 2019 of the People's Court of Nghi Loc district, Nghe An province, and transfer the case file to the Nghi Loc District People's Court, Nghe An province for retrial in accordance with the provisions of law. Temporarily suspend the enforcement of the above-mentioned appeal judgment until a cassation decision is made.

However, according to the people, the case has not progressed so far. According to the reporter's records, on this plot of land, there is still a eucalyptus forest planted by Mr. Hieu's family. In addition, Mr. Phu's family's fish pond is still there, although he has not raised fish for several years. Dozens of households who have lived in Cua Mo hamlet also signed the complaint confirming that Mr. Phu and Mr. Hieu have been using a part of this plot of land for a long time.

Mr. Phu and Mr. Hieu's families also said that Mr. Dien's family had agreed to sell this prime land plot to a large construction company in Nghe An province a long time ago. Regarding this, the Chairman of Nghi Yen Commune People's Committee said, "he has not yet received this information".

Tien Hung